What stories do our clothes carry? Can a single garment say something profound about its owner?

KRISTINA DAUKINTYTĖ AAS and KARINA NØKLEBY PRESTTUN have had a close professional relationship since they met at the Department of Fine Art at the Bergen Academy of Art and Design (KHiB). Kristina graduated with a master’s degree in 2011, and Karina graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 2009.

In 2014 their works were shown at the joint exhibition, "Play and Decay" in Kaunas at the 101 Gallery, and later in Vilnius. A more formal collaboration started in 2016 when they started to develop joint projects and exhibitions. Since then, they've had four solo exhibitions in Norway and participated in international exhibitions in the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, and Latvia. Their works have already been acquired by the National Museums of Decorative Arts and Design in Oslo, Bergen, and Trondheim.

The common ground between these two artists is their interest in textiles. The materials serve as the foundation for an idea, which in turn takes new directions and flourishes into its individuality and distinctiveness in the process. Both artists employ digital instruments frequently: Kristina through her work with digital jacquard-weaves, characterized by complex woven-in designs, and Karina through her computerized laser cutter, but in close dialogue with the textiles.

The “Garment exchange” can be seen as an extension of their jacquard woven self-portraits from 2017. For this exhibition, the artists have chosen a personal garment to be “portrayed”, both by themselves and by the other. The exchange resulted in a series of new textile works in different techniques. Kristina has been exploring an RGB-inspired way of mixing color, using 4 different threads in the weft, and Karina has been working with stencils and spray paint.

An American-style sweater side by side with an almost-never-worn school uniform of the Soviet-era – do they have anything in common?